


Be My Salvation

by DevilsDelusionalMistress



Category: Terminator Salvation (2009)
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/M, Family, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-01
Updated: 2013-05-08
Packaged: 2017-12-10 01:37:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/780275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DevilsDelusionalMistress/pseuds/DevilsDelusionalMistress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Marcus found someone else when he woke up in the mud and the rain. Find out what happends on their journey to figuring out just what the hell is going on as they trudge through their new world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> Obviously I don't own Terminator or any of the characters because if I did I sure as hell wouldn't share John or Marcus with anyone!!!
> 
> I hope you all like this story. If it looks familiar, it is also published on FF.net. Let me know what you think! Feedback is always welcome!!!

“Hurry up Dessa, I’m starving!” Grace complained by the door. I threw my crocs into my locker and grabbed my jacket. My first day is only half over and I’m already exhausted! Working in the ER is hectic, fast paced and sometimes chaotic. I’m so glad its time for lunch.  
I followed Grace as she nearly bounced down the hall way and out the front doors. She always has boundless amounts of energy.  
“I knew working in the ER was going to be difficult but I never realized how hard some of the cases would hit me, you know?” she said as we walked down the street. Our favorite café was only a two minute walk from the hospital.  
“Yeah, I know what you mean. I had to stitch us a stab victim, he was only 7 years old! It took twenty minutes to suture his lacerations. I wanted to cry the whole time.” I sighed flopping down in a metal chair under the bright yellow umbrella on the patio eating area.  
“I saw him! His mother was yelling at him for picking some kind of fight at school! Oh and the big accident on that highway! I forgot how much carnage a car accident could cause! Half the people that were brought in didn’t even make it to the operating room.” She shuddered. We both ordered grilled chicken salads.  
“I set quite a few broken bones for the ones who lived. A woman had to be sedated because she lost her husband and had become hysterical. I felt so bad. What do you say to someone like that? How do you tell them that there was nothing you could do to save the one they loved?” I’ll never forget the look the woman gave me when I told her how sorry I was for her loss but there wasn’t anything we could do for her husband.  
“There really isn’t anything you could say.” Grace pocked moodily at her salad. “All you can do is let them know that you tried to the best o your ability. There isn’t anything anyone could say to lessen the pain of losing someone you care about.”  
“I guess you’re right. I just wish there was something I could do, you know? Something that could bring them some comfort, any comfort.” We lapsed into rare silence. Grace and I are almost never quiet, especially not when we are together. The waitress had come by and refilled our sodas by the time she spoke again.  
“Do you think Josh would go for me?” I couldn’t help but laugh. Leave it to Grace to take a semi-serious conversation and shoot it in a whole other direction.  
“Josh from pediatrics?”  
“Yeah, tall, dark, mysterious and handsome, on top of that he likes kids! He’s perfect.” She sighed dreamily.  
“The idea of him is perfect. You haven’t ever spoken to him.” I teased her. Over her shoulder I noticed a man headed our direction. He looked…unclean to say the least. He’s probably just a homeless guy looking for restaurant leftovers. Some places do that; donate food to those in need.  
“Are you even listening to me?” Grace whined. I smiled at her. My best friend, the sister I never had but always wanted.  
“Yes Gracey, I am. Hunky, dreamy, kid friendly, I got it. Go on.” She rolled her eyes at me but continued gushing about her latest crush. I realized the man was slowing down. He stopped beside our table, twitching slightly and looking very nervous.  
“Can I help you?” I asked politely. No need to be rude, he may be lost, or mentally ill. You never know with homeless people. He took his hand out of his pocket and the light of the sun glinted off a reflective surface.  
“You can die.” He said desperately, his hand shaking. It was a gun. I was startled by a loud bang, and then I registered the pain blossoming from my left side, right next to my collar bone. Part of my mind was focused on the pain, and the growing darkness I was experiencing, as well as the screams I could barley here around me. The analytical part of my brain supplied only one word: Fatal.  
My vision blurred and my head swam. I tried to breathe slowly and not panic but I knew it was useless. My medical training told me that. I saw an image of the woman whose husband had died earlier that day. She was wearing my scrubs and standing alone in a sea of darkness.  
“I’m sorry,” She said, hands clasped before her. “There was nothing we could do…”  
Nothing…  
Nothing…  
Nothing…


	2. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First chapter!

‘Ew.’ It was the first thought that came to my mind when I gained consciousness. I was laying in something disturbingly squishy. Had I been asleep? No, I don’t think so. I would remember going down for a nap. Then why…Memories came flooding back.  
Images of my best friend Grace and I graduating from Georgetown Medical, getting our first job together in the local emergency room. Signing up as donors for Cyberdyne Research. Lunch outside our favorite café. The strange man walking up to our table.  
“Can I help you?”  
“Yes, you can die.”  
Bang.  
Pain.  
Darkness.  
I screamed, sitting up. I was in the mud, naked, being pelted my rain. Panic quickly began setting in. I looked around in efforts of finding something familiar only to screamed again, louder this time. Bodies lay scattered all around me, patches of fire, helicopters and other metal machines were in pieces everywhere!  
A hand on my shoulder brought another shriek from my lips. I spun around, muddy, wet hair sticking to my face and neck. A man knelt beside me. Half dressed and likewise covered in mud. A body several feet away was missing his pants.  
“Whoa, whoa, calm down, I’m not going to hurt you.” He reached over to the nearest body and stripped its jacket before draping it over my shoulders. I cringed but he only shrugged. “It’s better than nothing. Stay right here, I’ll be right back.”   
I nodded numbly not having a single clue as to what else I should do. He went back over to the half dressed man and finished commandeering his clothing. When he had finished lacing up his newly acquired boots he came back over to me. Gently, he pulled me to my feet, I’m glad to say my knees didn’t just give out like I thought they would.  
He introduced himself as Marcus Wright before zipping up the jacket I was wearing. It went almost all the way down to my knees.  
“I am Odessa Croy.” I gave him my name in return. “Where are we?”  
“Don’t have a clue.” He scowled. “Come on; let’s see if we can’t find you something closer to your size.” He led me through the field of bodies until we came upon a young man, short and thin. Marcus removed the corpse’s clothes when I was unable to bring myself to do it. I’ve seen dead bodies before at the hospital but this just felt so different. He turned away as I dressed, trying not to think about the clothes previous owner.  
The wife beater was a decent fit, sadly, even with the help of the belt I couldn’t make the pants stay up. After a moment of thought, I came up with an alternative solution. I didn’t like it, but it was better than nothing at all.  
“Could I have his shorts please?” I requested softly. Marcus raised an eyebrow at me, shrugged and did as I asked before turning away again. I discarded the pants and slipped on the shorts, suppressing a shudder. I pulled the jacket back on and used the belt to synch in the waist for a makeshift dress. We had to take several pairs of socks for the boots to fit decently.  
After I was all dressed we began walking in a seemingly random direction. I asked Marcus if he knew where he was going. The sky had partially cleared, the clouds were fewer but it was still drizzling. He pointed to a particularly bright star.  
“North.”  
We walked in silence for a while before I broke it again.  
“I’m not supposed to be here.” I said sadly. “I’m supposed to be dead.”  
“That makes two of us.” he sighed, running his hand over his short dark hair.  
“You died too?” he nodded. “Are you sure?” It felt like a stupid question. “Maybe we just think we died and instead we were unconscious for a while. What happened to you?”  
“Lethal injection, pretty sure that’s permanent. You?” Well so much for that theory.   
“A man shot me while I was having lunch with my best friend. Oh no! Grace! What if he hurt her too?” I felt like crying. A heavy arm settled across my shoulders. “What if she is back there?” I looked back the way we had come.  
“You were the only other living person I found.”  
“How do you think we ended up here, where ever here is?”  
“No idea. They were supposed to chop me up until there was nothing left.”  
“They, who are They?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you all think!!  
> Lots of love!   
> DDM


	3. Chapter 2

“Cyber something.” I stopped walking and frowned.  
“Cyberdyne?”  
“Yeah, that’s it. How’d you know?” I barley noticed when he stopped too.  
“I signed up to be a body donor for their research. My body was to go to them after I died. I just didn’t expect it to be a week later.”  
We began walking again. The rain had stopped and the sun was rising. I pulled my hair over one shoulder to braid it and was pleased to note that most of the mud was gone. Questions kept chasing one another in circles in my head, my mind in overdrive. Why are we here? Where is here? Why aren’t I dead? Was I just unconscious? If so, for how long? Was it really unconsciousness at all? What happened to those people back there? Every one of my questions just seemed to lead me to new ones rather than supplying any answers.  
The feel of the ground suddenly changed beneath my feet. I realized Marcus had stopped too and looked down. He knelt and brushed sand aside revealing what looked like tarmac, we were standing on a road. A road to where? I have no clue. How could a road be covered almost completely in sand? Didn’t enough people drive on it to keep it clear?  
“Where do you think it goes?” I asked hesitantly, unable to keep that question to myself.  
“I don’t know. What I do know, is that roads lead to towns or cities. There we can figure out where we are.” I agreed and we changed course, following the moderately covered road.   
Marcus was quiet, so I stayed that way too. It was difficult, very difficult. I like to talk in fact I love it. Any long periods of silence bothers me, to the bone.   
It was some time before we took a break, sitting atop a large boulder on the side of the road, the sun was high in the sky. Our perch was elevated enough that we could see the mountains in the distance, in almost every direction. I didn’t really care much for the scenery. I was still worried about what might have happened to Grace after I was shot. Maybe someone tackled the man, or knocked the gun from his hand. Grace could have ducked beneath the table.   
“There is something over that way.” I jumped in surprise. Marcus was pointing off in the direction we had been headed.  
“It looks like mountains to me.” he rolled his eyes at me.  
“Look harder.” I did. There was something gray sticking up in an unnatural fashion. Possibly man-made?  
“The gray thing?” he seemed pleased I had finally seen what he was seeing.  
“We’ll keep going that direction.” He slid off the boulder and offered his hand to help me slide down as well. The silence that followed was really starting to bug me. It wasn’t uncomfortable by any means, just…quiet. I couldn’t take it anymore.   
“Marcus?” he grunted at me. “Can I ask you a personal question?”  
“Shoot.”  
“Why were you on Death Row?”   
“What?” His steps faltered but he didn’t stop.  
“You said you died by lethal injection. What did you do to get it?” He didn’t say anything for a few minutes and I was afraid that I had crossed some invisible line I hadn’t been aware I was standing on. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked. Forget I said anything!”  
“Does it bother you?” he asked after more time when by. I made an unintelligent noise of confusion. “Does it bother you?” he asked again.  
“Does what bother me?”  
“Does it bother you that I was on Death Row?” I gave it some serious though. Did it bother me? He hadn’t done anything to hurt me. In fact, he hadn’t been anything but helpful since I woke up in the mud. Quiet, but gentlemanly all the same.  
“No, it doesn’t. I was only curious.” I paused and felt the need to explain myself further. “It’s just that all the quiet was killing me! Just so you know for the future, long silences hardly ever last around me. I can’t help it, I’m a talker.” I smiled up at him. He smirked and rolled his eyes.  
“I’m a pretty decent listener.” He stared down at his feet as they kicked up dust before looking straight ahead. “I did something really stupid. So thanks to me, a couple of cops, and my brother lost their lives.”  
“Oh, I’m sorry about your brother.” He nodded.  
“What about you? What did you do before you died?”  
“I studied to be a trauma surgeon at Georgetown Medical, graduated top 10% of my class. I had just gotten my first real job as a doctor at the ER with Grace. I was having a pretty eventful first day to bad I died halfway through it. I would have really liked to see what happened after lunch. I bet it would have been even more hectic!”  
“How so?” he was humoring my need to talk, something I was very grateful for.   
“I had already stitched up a stab victim and fished a bullet out of the arm of another. There had been a huge pileup on the interstate so I had to give some stitches and reset a couple of shoulders, set quite a few broken bones and pull bits of metal and glass from whoever was set in front of me. I loved it! Not the people getting hurt part, obviously.”  
“Oh no, of course not.” He nodded and laughed.  
“No really! It was the helping people part that I liked. I love to help others. That is the whole reason I became a trauma surgeon instead than a lawyer like Dad, or a judger like my Mom.” I felt the need to cry again. It must have shown on my face because Marcus chose to distract me with another question rather than lapse into silence again.  
“Any siblings?”  
“Nope, it was just me. I don’t think my parents could have handled having another child.”  
“You were that much of a handful?” he asked playfully.  
“Oh no, my parents were just really busy. All the time. They had very full schedules, almost every minute of every day was planned out for them. I was with Ellie most of my childhood.”  
“Ellie?”  
“She was my nanny until I was fifteen. After that, my parents decided I didn’t need her anymore.”   
“Who was with you after that?”  
“No one, it was just me and Grace sometimes when she was allowed over.”  
“My brother and I did almost everything together. Most if it was less than legal, but we looked out for each other.”  
The gray structures were getting closer. They looked vaguely familiar.  
“I would have liked a sibling. Grace and I met in fifth grade. She was the closest thing I ever had to a sister. We did everything together, shopping, movies, dinners, sleepovers, class projects. We were inseparable.”  
“Well, let’s find out where we are, and then we can see I we can find out about your family.” I beamed at him. I suddenly realized how much taller than me he was. I only came up to his shoulder. I looked down at the jacket I was wearing. It was a dirty blue color and had obviously seen better days. One arm had what looked like medical grade tape around the bicep. It was stained red, like blood. I leaned over to inspect Marcus’ jacket, though it was a different color, it too sported something similar on the arm. I wonder of it has some kind o significance.  
“Is that what I think it is?” Marcus broke me out of my thoughts. I looked ahead and saw that the gray structures had officially taken shape.  
“That’s the back of the ‘Hollywood’ sign! We’re in California!” I felt a little better knowing where we were. All of that comfort went away however when we were standing in front of the sign looking out over the city of Los Angeles.   
“Oh my god…”


	4. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet Kyle

I felt like someone had stolen my ability to breathe. The once beautiful city of Los Angeles was in complete and utter ruin, it looked like it had been abandoned a long time ago. Windowless buildings were literally falling apart, most looked ready to give way any second. Derelict cars lined the streets in various states of disrepair, some were missing tires or windows, and others were without doors or engines. Plants and weeds grew wild from numerous cracks in the pavement. What could have happened to this city? Where were all the people?  
“What the hell happened here?” Marcus said quietly. We began to slowly walk down the hill toward the dilapidated city. Rubble fell from the closest building when we reached city limits. “Stay close.”   
We walked down several streets in total silence. It was like a ghost town. So much for getting some answers once we found a city. All I have now are more questions.  
“Marcus, what year do you think it is?” I asked as the thought occurred to me.  
“What?” he came to a halt.  
“When I died, every store was selling gossip magazines, full of rubbish on movie stars and celebrities. We are in LA, it's notorious for being home to tons of people like that. From the looks of things, no one has been here in years.”  
“You’re right. There isn’t anyone here. We should keep going.”  
We had reached what I assumed was close to the middle of the city when I saw it. Another person! I pointed them out to Marcus and he instantly tried to get their attention. It worked. When the sound of gunfire reached my ears I wished it hadn’t, and I had kept my mouth shut for once. Dirt flew in a straight line as large bullets made their way toward us. I was frozen in confused shock, Marcus seemed to be too. Why would someone shoot at us? We were both jarred out of our astonishment when we were tackled out of the line of fire. Before either of us could speak we were given the signal to stay quiet as we all waited behind some kind of metal barrier. The man who saved us hit a lever, activating some kind of trap that snared what appeared to be a metal man by the ankle. He then turned to us, removing the bandana and goggles from his face.  
“Come with me if you want to live.” He said quietly before taking off. Marcus and I shared a glance before taking off after our rescuer. We were shot at from behind, ruble flying every which way as we bolted into the nearest building. We ran up several flights of stairs and were at on the top level when the young man made a series of hand signals. An adorable little girl put down her shot gun to set off another trap, crushing the metal, weapon wielding man with heavy machinery several stories below.  
Marcus turned to the little girl and demanded to know what was going on. The young man informed us that she didn’t talk before pointing his shot gun at us and telling us we should start. Marcus moved me behind him with one arm. The young man was angry about what we were wearing. His anger was spurred on when he asked where we had gotten our jackets and Marcus told him that the other guys didn’t need them anymore as he slowly advanced. I stayed close to him. The boy pointed out the red stained tape that I had noticed earlier on the arms of our jackets.  
“It’s the symbol of The Resistance. You’re obviously not Resistance Fighters, so take it off.” He said angrily. If he thought I was going to strip out of the only piece of clothing covering me, he had another thing coming. I held onto the back of Marcus’ coat as he moved toward the boy some more.  
“Take it of!” he was shouting now, pointing the shot gun at Marcus’ head. I jumped when he snatched the gun out of the boy’s hands, reversing the situation.   
“You point that gun at someone, you better be ready to pull the trigger.” He told the stunned, nervous boy. Marcus held the position for a moment before he gave the boy back his gun.  
“What was that thing?” I repeated Marcus’ earlier, unanswered question, peaking around his shoulder.  
“Terminator, T600.” That didn’t really clear up any of the confusion.  
“What day is it? What year?” Marcus asked looking around the desolate landscape.  
“Twenty eighteen.”   
“What happened here?”  
“Judgment Day happened.”   
“You’re kidding. Please tell me you are kidding. Judgment Day, you mean like an apocalypse?” I asked incredulously.   
“Have you been living under a rock?” he asked like I was slow.  
“Something like that.” Marcus muttered. Suddenly the boy’s words registered in my mind.  
“Wait, what year did you say it is?” I needed conformation.  
“Its 2018.” He said firmly.  
“Two thousand…eighteen…” my knees gave out but Marcus caught me before I ended up on the floor. I held tightly to his sleeve burying my head in the crook of his arm. I couldn’t believe so much time had passed.   
“What is the last year you remember?” my companion asked softy.  
“It…it was 04’.” I whispered, looking up at him and trying to regain my composer.  
“I went in 03’.” He murmured. Both kids were watching us curiously.  
“Fourteen, fifteen years have gone by. How could we have missed that much time? How is that possible?” he shook his head, just as at a loss as I was.  
“We have to get out of here, head north.” Marcus said loud enough for the others to hear now, as he steadied me on my feet again.  
“You can’t go on foot. The machines will cut you down. You need speed. Besides, Skynet controls everything north of Sacramento, you can’t go that way.” The boy said knowingly.  
“We need a car.” I interjected.   
“There are some by Griffith Observatory. They don’t run though.” The boy shrugged.   
“Take us.” Marcus demanded. The boy didn’t answer though, he was looking past us. I turned to see the little girl standing, seemingly frozen to the spot.   
“Get down!” the boy yelled grabbing the girls hand and dropping to the ground. Marcus and I dove down behind a wall next to them. I had a hand on the little girl’s arm, feeling better knowing that she was in one piece. Marcus similarly had one splayed across my middle. A huge machine rumbled passed out position. The vibration of its passing toppled a building across the street, bathing us all in dust. We were all coughing uncontrollably as we sat up.  
“That was a Hunter Killer.” The boy said turning to us. “Thanks to you, they know we are here.” I instantly felt guilty. Marcus however didn’t seem at all phased.  
“What is your name kid?” he asked.   
“Kyle Reese. That is Star.” He nodded toward the little girl. “Come on.” He stood up, taking her by the hand and walking off. I got up and quickly followed after them. Checking Star for injuries as we walked. I looked expectantly over my shoulder at Marcus who was dusting himself off. He rolled his eyes at me but jogged to catch up. It was dark by the time we reached what appeared to be a fort or base of some kind.  
“Where are the cars?” Marcus asked when Kyle sat down. He advised against going out in the dark.  
“They have infrared.” He told us. “They hunt better at night. We’ll all go tomorrow morning.” Kyle picked up a plate with something that might have been meat sitting on it. Or at least had been meat, once upon a time. Marcus seemed to agree with me.  
“What is that?” he asked, making a face.  
“Two day old coyote.” Kyle sniffed the plate and put it down. “Better than three day old coyote.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all like this one! Next one will be out soon!


End file.
